South Melbourne FC

The Blue and White Forever

South Defeat League Leaders In Thriller

South Defeat League Leaders In Thriller

Sunday, 3 November 2002 12:00 AM

South Melbourne defeated league leaders and reigning champions Olympic Sharks, in one of the the greatest matches in National Soccer League history.

The 6 – 4 final score of this very entertaining and attacking match, had fans on the edge of their seats right up to the final whistle. South Melbourne began like a house on fire and stunned the away side, scoring four goals in the opening 20 minutes. To their credit Olympic clawed their way back into the game and with minutes remaining the scoreline stood at 5 – 4.

Vaughan Coveny put Olympic to rest and relieved the home fans scoring a penalty in the 89th minute.

South Melbourne played some awesome football and jumped six places to fifth on the NSL table. Strikers Vaughan Coveny, Peter Buljan and Man of the Match Michael Baird, all scored for the home side. Captain for the day, Panopoulos played a great role in midfield and also got himself on the scoresheet.

Final score, South Melbourne 6 defeated Olympic Sharks 4.

SOUTH MELBOURNE 6 (Baird ‘2, ’40, Buljan ‘9, Coveny ’13, ’89, Panopoulos ’20)
Sydney United 4 (Packer ’22, Milicic’44, Halpin ’60, Pondeljak ’85)

Crowd: 6,027
Venue: Bob Jane Stadium, Melbourne

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